A SERVICE TO FARMERS

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21400, 16 February 1935, Page 20

A SERVICE TO FARMERS

* _! MIDLAND MOTORWAYS NETWORK __ BRINGING COrNTRY CLOSER TO TOWN • For many farmers in Canterbury, 1 and many townspeople, too, the buses I of Midland Motorways have become | a regular and a reassuring feature in 1 their lives. Particularly in country 1 districts, the buses have come to mean 3 that town is very much nearer than I it was before they began to run, that i the conveniences of the city are with- § in easier reach, and that there is a I regular and reliable contact with the § town. 1 The fleet of Midland Motorways is g now nine buses, these ranging in size | from 19-seaters to 25-seaters. All are g modern and comfortable, and their § record for reliability is an enviable I. one. One of the fleet has during its I four years on the run to Whitecliffs, 1 covered 107,000 miles with not one mechanical delay. It is a typical example of the dependability of modern motor vehicles. Modern Reliability The mileage run last year by the Midland Motorways fleet amounted to 1 180,000 for the nine buses, which in g that time ran an average of 20,000 i miles each. In such small things as i the reliability of tyres the modern I bus has shown enormous advances, I and each of the Midland Motorways » machines has a record of about 30,000 i miles running between each stop on I the road because of the failure of a 1 tyre. § The proprietors of motor-bus lines 1 at present find that their activities are g somewhat circumscribed by Govern- § merit regulation and taxation, but g Laugeson and Son, the proprietors of | Midland Motorways, arc running sue- | cessful services to Springfield, Methven, Whitecliffs, and Darfleld, Hororata, Kaiapoi. and Belfast. On Sundays during the summer there is a service to Kairaki beach. Not the least important part of the service given by Midland ,Motorways is the delivery of parcels. Many times in the ordinary business of farming, there are urgent repairs necessary to such implements as tractors and harvesting machines. Midland Motorways provides a swift and sure delivery of these parts for repair, or a rapid delivery of new parts from the city. Taxes Paid The contributions of such an organisation as Midland Motorways to the revenue of the country are considerable. About 50,000 passengers are carried every year, and the outlay in taxation, for the year ended March 31, 1934, when only live buses were used, was as follows: £ s. d. Petrol tax .. .. 553 12 81 Oil tax .. .. 13 18 0 Heavy traffic tax .. 175 10 8 Registration tax .. .. 18 0 0 Application for service licenses tax . . .. 12 0 0 On granting of passenger service license tax .. 8 0 0 Certificates of fitness .. 18 0 0 £BO4 1 41 '"